Chapter 18
O ne week.
Seven days.
That was how long Layla had gone without seeing or hearing from Andres.
It was one thing for him to ghost her, but it was something altogether different for him to do that to Dior.
She never thought Andres would be the type to end things with no explanation, but obviously she was wrong.
No matter how much she didn’t want to admit it, he’d walked out of their lives…
and Carlos had been trying to fill that space as best as he possibly could.
Dior had been asking about Andres at least ten times a day, and every time she did, it made Layla’s heart burn.
After a day of not hearing from him, Layla finally put her pride aside and called him for Dior.
When he didn’t answer, she accepted the loss and began to prepare to move on.
It still didn’t make any sense to her why he’d randomly cut them off…
unless he thought that was the easiest way to handle Layla replacing him as Dior’s aide.
Whether she did or she didn’t, Layla thought they had an understanding that things would remain personal between them, but obviously she was wrong.
Maybe Andres didn’t believe they stood a real chance and that she would go along with whatever Carlos demanded.
Whatever the case, it was time she accepted the fact that Andres had moved on.
“Mommy?” Dior called sweetly, standing at the doorframe of Layla’s bedroom.
“Yes, baby girl?”
“Can you call Andres again?”
Layla smiled softly as her eyes watered.
Her own shattered heart she could handle, but Dior’s?
There was no coming back from that.
“He’s not going to answer, Dior.”
“But he said I could call him if I needed him. Maybe if he knew it was me he would answer.” Clenching her jaw, Layla’s head hung.
“Can we go to the community center and see him?”
Layla’s head shook as she fought her tears.
After releasing a shaky breath she almost whispered, “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Well when can I see him again?”
Layla hadn’t had the courage to tell Dior the truth, but she knew she would have to tell her eventually.
Honestly, Layla didn’t want to say the words aloud because then she’d have no choice but to accept them.
The sound of the front door opening and closing was the distraction Layla needed.
She stood from the bed, walking over to the door as Dior stepped into the hall.
“Daddy’s home.”
Dior’s expression remained flat as she headed down the opposite end of the hall toward her room.
Carlos had been home after work every night for the past week.
He was sleeping in the guest bedroom as Layla requested.
Though she appreciated his efforts, Layla felt it may have been too late.
Certainly too late for them, at least, but maybe with consistency he still had a chance with Dior.
He’d mangled her heart too much for such a brief amount of time to make any real change between them.
For so long, Carlos had made her feel unwanted.
That would be hard to break.
“Hey,” Carlos greeted, handing her a bouquet of red roses.
“Hey. These are nice. Thank you.”
“How has your day been?”
Layla squeezed the back of her neck and sighed as he loosened his tie.
“Fine. You?”
“Same. Listen, I’ve been doing some research, and I think I found a new aide for Dior.”
“Oh. I didn’t know you were even looking.”
Carlos grinned as he unbuttoned his shirt.
“I want you to know I’m serious about fixing what’s broken between us. She’s willing to meet you both for an interview tomorrow if you can. I know it’s been a while since she’s worked with that nigga and she will be starting school soon, so we don’t have any time to waste.”
At the mention of Andres, Layla’s heart burned.
But what Carlos said was true; they didn’t have any time to waste.
Dior had made great progress, but she still had a lot of work to do.
“I’ll meet with her,” Layla agreed.
“Good. Have y’all eaten dinner yet?”
Her head shook as she held herself.
“No, we were waiting for you.”
“Cool. Well… how about we go out to dinner?”
“All three of us?”
“Yeah. Is that cool? I know I need help with how I speak to her but I’m ready to learn.”
Layla thought it over for a few seconds.
“Um… yeah. I don’t see why not. And thank you for that. I know you weren’t intentionally trying to be crass…”
“Of course not. To be real…” Carlos stepped closer and lowered his voice.
“I haven’t wanted to accept that she was different. I’ve been in denial for a really long time. More than anything, I think that’s why I haven’t wanted to treat her differently or accept his help. But after she had that last meltdown… knowing I was the cause of it… that’s haunted me.” Carlos paused, and for a brief moment, his eyes glossed over.
“If I can’t be good for her, I don’t want to be around her at all. I’ll go in here with her and give you some time to get ready.”
She nodded, still standing there as he passed her to go to Dior’s room.
“What’s up, Dior?” he greeted.
“Hi,” she replied softly.
“Can I paint with you?”
“Mmm… yes?”
Layla chuckled over how her answer sounded more like a question.
Hell, Dior was probably confused about the changes within her father too.
With a sigh, Layla headed to her room to get dressed.
If Carlos was going to try and be more active, the least she could do was meet him halfway.